Northern Ireland: Victims' and Survivors' Commissioner

Baroness Amos: My right honourable friend the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland has made the following Written Ministerial Statement:
	The troubles have left their mark on the people of Northern Ireland and all those affected by the conflict. Almost 4000 lives were lost, each one an individual loved and mourned by family and friends. And the human cost extends beyond these victims, to their families and friends, to all those who survived their ordeals, and to the wider community which struggles still to heal the divisions that were created and became entrenched.
	The pain of loss is still keenly felt by those who lost loved ones. The Government cannot hope to change that. But there is a sense in which we in Northern Ireland need to come to terms with what has happened over the past 35 years: to tackle the legacy in a way that respects the suffering and loss that has been experienced; but which also allows the community as a whole to build a future that is not overshadowed by the events of the past.
	Last spring, the Prime Minister said that he hoped that the Government could find a way to deal with Northern Ireland's past. Since then I have been reflecting on how we might begin this process. I have visited South Africa, to see at first hand how a very different society has sought to address its own particular legacy. I have talked privately to experts and opinion formers to hear their views. And in parallel with that process the Minister for Victims, Angela Smith, has been engaged in a detailed consultation with groups representing victims and survivors of the troubles on the future shape of services to meet their needs. I have drawn a number of lessons from these experiences.
	My view remains that Northern Ireland needs its own tailored approach to dealing with the past. That is not to say that we cannot learn from the experiences of other societies that have faced a difficult and turbulent period in their recent history. But any process for dealing with Northern Ireland's past will require an approach that acknowledges and respects its unique features as well as its similarities to situations elsewhere.
	I also believe that the scope and aims of any process need to be widely understood and agreed, and must be capable of commanding support and credibility right across the community. Government have the ultimate responsibility for ensuring that an appropriate mechanism is found for dealing with the past to the satisfaction of all sections of the community. But I recognise too that, for some, the Government's role in past events is itself seen as an issue; and it is hard for some sections of the community to see us as a genuinely neutral party. Neither do the Government have a monopoly on wisdom, and I recognise the major contribution that many practitioners and other bodies are already making in this field.
	These considerations have led me to conclude that any process for dealing with the past in Northern Ireland cannot be designed in isolation, or imposed by government. There will need to be broadly-based consultation that allows individuals and groups across the community to put their views on what form any process might take. And that consultation process itself will need broad cross-community support if the ideas it generates are to be constructively received.
	In the light of recent events, I am clear that now is not the right moment to launch such a broadly-based consultation process. And I think that we need to be realistic about what can be achieved in advance of a political settlement. But that is not to say that nothing can be done or that political considerations should forever stand in the way of meaningful progress. There are important steps that the Government can take now to address issues that are at the heart of how we can all deal with Northern Ireland's difficult legacy.
	I am therefore announcing today that the Government intend to put in place a new Victims' and Survivors' Commissioner. I believe that this is necessary both to ensure a real focus on the needs of victims and survivors of the troubles in Northern Ireland and to ensure that their voices continue to be heard and respected. So I am publishing alongside this announcement a consultation paper on the future of victims' and survivors' services for those victims, which includes the Government's initial proposals for the commissioner's detailed remit. The document sets out proposals for a comprehensive approach to the provision of services, with the commissioner playing a pivotal role in ensuring effective service delivery and in promoting the interests of all those who have suffered as a result of Northern Ireland's troubled past. One of the commissioner's responsibilities will be to take forward the establishment of the Victims' and Survivors' Forum envisaged in the Joint Declaration to represent their views in a structured way. That consultation will continue until the end of June this year.
	For many victims and survivors, the possibility of coming to terms with what has happened in the past is made more remote because there remain significant unanswered questions, for example about the fate of their loved ones. For many families, the difficulty of not knowing certain details surrounding their loved one's death continues to be a significant issue many years on. The Government recognise that there is a need to address in a systematic way all of the unresolved deaths in Northern Ireland's recent troubled past. As I announced last September, I have been in discussions with the Chief Constable about how the groundbreaking work of the Serious Crime Review Team (SCRT) within the Police Service of Northern Ireland might be expanded to help meet this need. I hope that both we and the PSNI will soon be in a position to say more about the next steps on this.
	We need to consider carefully and collectively how best to deal sensitively with the needs and expectations of all sections of the community in dealing with the legacy of the past. The creation of a Victims' and Survivors' Commissioner is intended as a major contribution to that work. But it does not mark the end either of the process or the Government's contribution to it.

Reservists: Support for UN Operations

Lord Bach: My honourable friend the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Defence (Mr Ivor Caplin) has made the following Written Ministerial Statement:
	I have today signed a new call-out order made under Section 56 of the Reserve Forces Act 1996 so that Reservists may continue to be called out to support UN operations in Sierra Leone and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The current order has expired and this new order takes effect from 1 March 2005. There are no plans to call out Reservists compulsorily under this order as it is expected that the small numbers needed will be met through voluntary mobilisation.

Osnabruck Court Martial

Lord Bach: My right honourable friend the Secretary of State for Defence (Mr Geoffrey Hoon) has made the following Written Ministerial Statement:
	The conclusion of the recent court martial in Osnabruck, and the lifting of reporting restrictions on an earlier court martial about the same incident enables me to say more about the outcome of both trials, although I must take into account that both cases are still subject to the statutory process of review and potential appeal.
	I was profoundly disturbed when I first saw the photographs. I do, however, share the Chief of the General Staff's view that the incidents depicted do not reflect typical behaviour and standards of the British Army. We also agree that it is right to apologise on behalf of the Army to the victims and the people of Iraq.
	On Friday the Chief of the General Staff issued a statement on this and future cases. He explained that this was the first in a possible five cases which might come to court where the allegation against members of the British Army is that they committed acts of deliberate abuse against Iraqis. These cases involve up to 22 soldiers.
	The CGS announced on behalf of the British Army that he has asked a senior officer to assess what lessons we need to learn in light of this and the other cases that might come to court, and to make recommendations for action. We will publish the findings from this work when the Army is no longer constrained by the legal processes. I fully support this statement.
	The Army sets high standards and demands that they are met. The recent courts martial have demonstrated that those who fail to meet those standards are called to account. The vast majority of servicemen and women do, however, perform to the very highest standards. Their service in Iraq has been outstanding and we are right to be proud of this.

Future Strategic Tanker Aircraft

Lord Bach: My right honourable friend the Secretary of State for Defence (Mr Geoffrey Hoon) has made the following Written Ministerial Statement:
	I am pleased to report to the House the latest developments in our plans to provide the Royal Air Force with a modern replacement air refuelling capability. Last year I reported our decision to take forward single bidder negotiations with AirTanker Ltd for the provision of the Future Strategic Tanker Aircraft programme which is planned to replace the RAF's fleet of VC10 and TriStar aircraft. Today I can report that significant progress has been made in those negotiations and that AirTanker has been selected as the preferred bidder.
	We continue to believe that the provision of the capability through a service-based contract with industry under the private finance initiative (PFI) offers the best prospect of a value for money solution that fully meets the needs of our Armed Forces. Through a PFI contract, industry would own and maintain the aircraft and provide training services, infrastructure and some personnel, while the RAF would undertake military operations.
	The negotiations over the last 12 months have resulted in agreement on key commercial terms such as pricing structure, measurement of service performance, commercial use of the aircraft and the compensation that would be paid in the very unlikely event that the contract is terminated.
	This programme will present UK industry with important opportunities. I expect that several hundreds of jobs will be created to support this programme throughout the United Kingdom. Several thousand skilled UK individuals will undertake work in support of the service.
	We will now continue to take forward negotiations with AirTanker Ltd, aimed at agreeing the detail of the complete PFI contract as soon as possible. I should stress that this remains a complex and challenging PFI programme and that issues remain to be resolved before a value for money arrangement can be concluded. At £l3 billion, it is the largest to be considered by the MoD to date. A final decision on whether or not to proceed with a PFI contract will not be taken until all negotiations, including an assessment of the finance ability of the deal, have been satisfactorily concluded. I will of course ensure that the House is kept fully in touch with significant developments.

Civil Registration Reform

Lord McIntosh of Haringey: My honourable friend the Financial Secretary (Mr Stephen Timms) has made the following Written Ministerial Statement:
	The House will wish to be aware of developments in the Government's plans for modernising civil registration.
	On 29 March 2004, my predecessor Ruth Kelly announced that a draft regulatory reform order containing provisions relating to the registration of birth and deaths in England and Wales would be presented to Parliament during that Session and that presentation of the proposals relating to marriage would be postponed until the present Session.
	The Regulatory Reform (Registration of Births and Deaths) (England Wales) Order 2004 was presented to Parliament on 22 July 2004. The Commons' Regulatory Reform Committee and the Lords' Delegated Powers and Regulatory Reform Committee published their reports towards the end of last year concluding that use of the order-making powers of the 2001 Act is inappropriate for modernisation of the registration service in respect of births and deaths. In the light of those reports, I am no longer planning to bring forward a draft regulatory reform order to reform marriage law.
	This Government remain committed to the modernisation of the registration service in England and Wales. This service, with its roots in the 19th century, touches everyone during their lives and it is important that it reflects the needs of society, families and individuals. Modernisation will provide more choice for the public in how they deal with the service, improved service delivery and easier public interaction with government on a wider range of services.
	I am actively looking for ways of delivering the key elements of civil registration modernisation and will be working with stakeholders over the coming months to agree a way forward. I will seek Parliamentary approval at appropriate times. In the meantime, new and more modern technology is planned to be introduced that will make it easier for members of the public to deal with the local registration service.